Afghan deaths in NATO firing

Villagers in southern Afghanistan have claimed that Afghan and NATO forces killed 13 demonstrators after a group of people took to the streets to protest the alleged desecration of the Quran. Residents in Garmsir district of Helmand province on Tuesday said that NATO-led forces raided a house in the area on Sunday and destroyed copies of the holy book in a local mosque. Haji Abdul Manan, one of the protesters, told the German Press Agency, DPA: "The people came out of their homes today to protest this action of foreign forces in a peaceful way, but the Afghan and international forces opened fire on us." He said more than 20 others were wounded in the firing. Habibullah Jan, another protester said: "We have proof that they destroyed our holy Quran. We can show them to [President Hamid] Karzai's government or the foreign forces."